Black Santa 'Dreezy Claus' Brings Chicago Gift Of Representation

CHICAGO — A jolly Black fellow hailing from the South Side (of Chicago and the North Pole), Dreezy Claus remains on a mission to spread Christmas cheer decked out in a plus-sized red-and-white suit, his beaming smile framed by a full beard and dangling dreadlocks the color of Silver Bells.

"Santa magic is a wonderful thing," said Dreezy Claus, the Christmastime alter-ego of Andre C. Russell. "You know, if you're Black, Santa can be Black. Santa is magical. He can be whatever he wants to be in a moment."

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That's a Christmastime ideal much of America hasn't embraced.

In 2016, for instance, outraged social media trolls who insisted "Santa is white" called for a boycott of Mall of America after management hired its first Black Santa, retired Army veteran and International Santa Claus Hall of Famer Larry Jefferson, who goes by "Santa Larry."

Jefferson, who wraps up a visit at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago today, has famously said, "Santa doesn't have a color," while spreading the Christmas spirit at holiday appearances across the country.

"It's all about representation. Everybody needs to be seen, just like they do on TVs and movies to make sure everyone is included. It does not matter if you are Black, white, red or yellow. Anyone can be Santa Claus if you have goodness in their hearts and love humankind," Jefferson told me Thursday. "My motto is: I'm Santa for all. The world is big enough for all kinds of Santas."

Russell agrees. And he says he's noticed that people have become increasingly accepting of Dreezy Claus since he started professionally billing himself as "Chicago's Black Santa" in 2018.

"It has been remarkable how more accepting people are. I was nervous about the reaction I might get received being Black, having locks walking around some venues. It might not be welcomed or be ridiculed or not as positive as it should be. I don't want to be oblivious that that's not going to happen. … But so far it's been really positive," he said.

"Even if it's not positive. I can honestly say I have not been disrespected."

Russell, 45, says he had his first encounter with Santa Claus that shared his skin tone when he was a kid attending St. Ailbe Catholic Church on the South Side.

"I saw Santa on TV and everywhere else, and he was a white dude. I saw him at church in my neighborhood, and he was Black," Russell said. "But I didn't think about whether Santa was Black or white. Santa was just Santa. Race wasn't a construct when I was young like that. Only when you get older do you pay attention to that."

Eventually, Russell volunteered to take on the Santa persona for his church youth group for a practical reason: He was a husky teenager who could fit into the suit.

Over the years, he reprised the role at the request of friends and colleagues at Mercy Home, where he got his start in social work, and for Christmas parties for his nonprofit, the Smith Center for Community Advancement.

Now, Russell, a behavior interventionist at Hunter Perkins Charter School, says he's responding to a growing demand for Black Santa bookings from parents and private firms in a mix of virtual and in-person visits that span the metro area.

"I've been everywhere. South Side. North Side. I'm going to Evanston, Skokie, the south burbs and Aurora on the 21st," he said. "It's a dope feeling to see their smile, their enthusiasm, and to fill that need to having a Santa that looks like them."

Each visit is different. Recently, a 6-year-old crushed Dreezy Claus in a friendly game of chess.

"I want to make positive memories. 'Santa came to my house, and we played a game.' That's a memory no one can take away," Russell said. "My message is always the same: Be good to each other. I talk about being nice and never naughty, and taking care of your siblings, and listening to your parents and teachers, and be good at school."

Last month, Russell's Dreezy Claus made Chicago Christmas tree lighting ceremony history.

"To actually be the first African American Santa to light the Christmas tree was a wonderful experience," Russell said. "Representation matters so much. For someone with my image, my look, to be up there on the stage as Santa Claus for the city of Chicago is a big opportunity. It was a good feeling, and I got a lot of support from the community."

Russell says he's pushing to expand the "Black Santa message" by recruiting fellow African Americans to don the Santa suit, and hawking a line of Christmas stories he wrote from a Black Santa's perspective.

"When I first became a Black Santa, I wanted to read stories, but not the typical stories with a white Santa on the cover," he said. "I wanted something more cultural."

So last year, Russell published his own Christmas story, "Dreezy Claus and the Boy Who Didn't Believe," about a kid who didn't know a Black Santa existed until he met him.

And this year, "Dreezy Claus and the Magic Coloring and Activity Book" also is available online.

As Russell prepares for a rush of Dreezy Claus appearances, there's one gift he hopes everybody gives this weekend.

"I want us all to be good to each other and really embrace the holiday spirit," he said. "Christmas should be about just being nice and being there for each other. After all, we've been through the last year, we deserve it. We need it."

Mark Konkol, recipient of the 2011 Pulitzer Prize for local reporting, wrote and produced the Peabody Award-winning series "Time: The Kalief Browder Story." He was a producer, writer and narrator for the "Chicagoland" docuseries on CNN and a consulting producer on the Showtime documentary "16 Shots."

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